Cymbopogon caesius (Hook. & Arn.) Stapf
subsp. giganteus (Chiov.) Sales

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Synonyms: Andropogon giganteus Hochst.
Cymbopogon giganteus Chiov.
Common names:
Frequency:
Status: Native
Description:
See C. caesius subsp. caesius. for general description of the species.
Notes: The species-group is characterized by having distinct swollen and fused lowermost internodes and pedicels. C. caesius sens. lat. (subsp. caesius and subsp. giganteus) shows great range of variation in habit and leaf size. Such characters are not fully correlated with each other and are certainly not correlated with any other character. Nevertheless, a reasonable number of specimens can be separated into those with delicate wiry culms and those with more robust culms by using lamina width. But there is a continuous range of variation in these and all other characters. The more robust plants (subsp. giganteus) are restricted to the northern, more tropical areas. Further studies are needed to ascertain whether the differences in habit between the two extremes of the range of variation are merely those of phenotypic plasticity or not. Lamina width can vary greatly in an individual and measurements should be taken of the widest leaves in a specimen.
Derivation of specific name: caesius: bluish-grey; giganteus: huge, gigantic
Habitat: Growing in grassland, savanna, open forest, dambos, fallow fields, waste ground and old maize fields, and along roadsides
Altitude range: 50 - 1550 m
Flowering time:
Worldwide distribution: Centred in tropical Africa with extensions further south
Malawi distribution: N,C,S
Growth form(s):
Endemic status:
Red data list status:
Insects associated with this species:
Spot characters: Display spot characters for this species
Literature:

Cope, T.A. (2002). Poaceae Flora Zambesiaca 10(4) Pages 76 - 80. (Includes a picture).

Jackson, G. & Wiehe, P.O. (1958). An Annotated Check List of Nyasaland Grasses The Government Printer, Zomba, Nyasaland Page 34. As Cymbopogon giganteus

Mapaura, A. & Timberlake, J. (eds) (2004). A checklist of Zimbabwean vascular plants Southern African Botanical Diversity Network Report No. 33 Sabonet, Pretoria and Harare Page 101.

Setshogo, M.P. (2005). Preliminary checklist of the plants of Botswana. Sabonet Report no. 37. Sabonet, Pretoria and Gaborone Page 133.

Other sources of information about Cymbopogon caesius subsp. giganteus:

Our websites:

Flora of Botswana: Cymbopogon caesius subsp. giganteus
Flora of Mozambique: Cymbopogon caesius subsp. giganteus
Flora of Zambia: Cymbopogon caesius subsp. giganteus
Flora of Zimbabwe: Cymbopogon caesius subsp. giganteus

External websites:

African Plants: A Photo Guide (Senckenberg): Cymbopogon caesius
BHL (Biodiversity Heritage Library): Cymbopogon caesius
EOL (Encyclopedia of Life): Cymbopogon caesius
GBIF (Global Biodiversity Information Facility): Cymbopogon caesius
Google: Web - Images - Scholar
iNaturalist: Cymbopogon caesius
IPNI (International Plant Names Index): Cymbopogon caesius
JSTOR Plant Science: Cymbopogon caesius
Mansfeld World Database of Agricultural and Horticultural Crops: Cymbopogon caesius
Plants of the World Online: Cymbopogon caesius
Tropicos: Cymbopogon caesius
Wikipedia: Cymbopogon caesius


Copyright: Mark Hyde, Bart Wursten, Petra Ballings and Meg Coates Palgrave, 2014-24

Hyde, M.A., Wursten, B.T., Ballings, P. & Coates Palgrave, M. (2024). Flora of Malawi: Species information: Cymbopogon caesius subsp. giganteus.
https://www.malawiflora.com/speciesdata/species.php?species_id=108670, retrieved 19 March 2024

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